Chapter 6, Problem 49P

Determine if approximate cylindrical symmetry holds for the following situations. State why or why not. (a) A 300-cm long copper rod of radius 1 cm is charged with +500 nC of charge and we seek electric field at a point 5 cm from the center of the rod. (b) A 10-cm long copper of radius 1 cm is charged with +500 nC of charge and we seek electric field at a point 5 cm from the center of the rod. (c) A 150-cm wooden rod is glued to a 150-cm plastic rod to make a 300 cm long rod, which is then painted with a charged paint so that one obtains a uniform charge density. The radius of each rod is 1 cm, and we seek an electric field at a point that is 4 cm from the center of the rod. (d) Same rod as (c), but we seek electric field at a point that is 500 cm from the center of the rod.